Wellington city awash with 200 shared bikes as six-month Onzo trial begins

Sunday, 7 October 2018

There are 200 bicycles in Wellington city which are part of a six-month trial of Onzo's bike sharing initiative.

Taking to Wellington's streets on two wheels has been made easier with the launch of the capital's first bicycle share programme.

The six-month trial began on Saturday, with the Wellington City Council opting for the Onzo scheme, dreamed up by an Auckland-based company.

Wellington's streets were flooded with 200 fixed-gear bicycles in the hopes of attracting wannabe riders at a cost of 25 cents for every 15 minutes of riding.

Cycle Aware Wellington spokesman Patrick Morgan woke early on Sunday morning to give one of the bikes a go - his trip costing him $1.

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He said the one-speed system would possibly limit the hill climbs people would attempt, but the bike was suited to cruising around the streets.

Cycle Aware Wellington spokesman Patrick Morgan takes to Wellington's streets as the city council trials the Onzo bike share system..

'I think that's part of the charm.'

Plenty of people stopped him to enquire about the bike, Morgan said.

'The bike rides well and it was a lot of fun. Any modern city has a bike share.'

The fixed-gear bicycles can be picked up and used around Wellington city until the six-month trial of Onzo's bike sharing initiative ends in April next year.

Morgan hoped the city council could work closely with Onzo to iron out any concerns to see the capital permanently implement the system.

While the seat's were comfortable, they may be a little low for the taller rider, Morgan said, also noting the shared helmet could be a bit of a hurdle for some.

The 'dockless' bike hire system doesn't require special bike parking stations and will require users to download an app to find the nearest bike.

Mayor Justin Lester said the scheme was a trial at this stage as there had been issues with bike shares in other places, including theft and vandalism.

The council wanted to make sure any issues were ironed out before it proceed further.

Onzo chief operating officer Harry Yang has said Wellington's cycling infrastructure work influenced his decision to bring the business to the capital.

Bikes would be regularly maintained and redistributed around the city to make sure plenty of bikes were not left in a few locations, he said.